As is known, individuals often refer to sheet or page of material when working on a computer. Alternatively, individuals often like to display various sheets of material such as pictures, calendar pages, notes or the like in their office space. Typically, an individual can insert a thumb tack or pin through the sheet of material to be displayed and into the vertical surface. It can be appreciated that the thumb tack may damage the sheet of material and/or the vertical surface in which the thumb tack is inserted. Alternatively, a user may use tape to affix the sheet of material to the vertical surface. Once again, it can be appreciated that the tape may damage the sheet of material. Further, tape often has insufficient adhesive force to support a sheet of material on the vertical surface for a prolonged period of time. As a result, the sheet of material may fall from the vertical surface.
Various attempts have been made to develop an article holder for supporting sheets of material and loose papers for display on a vertical surface. By way of example, the Rios, U.S. Pat. No. 6,257,422 discloses an article holder utilizing a backing member and a first portion movable relative to the backing member. A hinge interconnects the first portion and the backing member and biases the first portion towards the backing member in a spring-like fashion. A second hinge interconnects the first portion to a second portion that is movable relative to the first portion and extends into a cavity between the first portion and the backing member. The second hinge also biases the second portion towards the backing member. As a result, the article member maybe held between the second portion and the backing member.
Although functional for its intended purpose, the article holder disclosed in the '422 patent is somewhat cumbersome to manufacture. In the first embodiment, the article holder in the '422 patent includes a backing member formed from first and second layers. Alternatively, in the second embodiment wherein the backing member, first portion and second portion are formed from a single layer, a reinforcing means is required to add sufficient strength to the article holder. As a result, it is highly desirable to provide an article holder that is simpler and less expensive to manufacturer than the article holders in the prior art.
Therefore, it is a primary object and feature of the present invention to provide an article holder for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface.
It is a further object and feature of the present invention to provide an article holder for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface that is simple to utilize and inexpensive to manufacture.
It is a still further object and feature of the present invention to provide an article holder for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface that is more durable than prior article holders.
In accordance with the present invention, an article holder is provided for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface. The article holder includes a backing plate connectable to the vertical surface. The backing plate has an inner surface and upper edge. A clip operatively connected to the backing plate. The clip includes a face plate and an upper wall. The face plate has an inner surface, an upper edge and a lower edge. The upper wall interconnects the upper edge of the face plate and the upper edge of the backing plate. The upper wall has an inner surface. A retaining leg extends from the lower edge of the face plate and has a terminal end. The retaining leg is moveable between a closed position wherein the terminal end of the retaining leg engages the inner surface of the backing plate and an open position wherein the retaining leg is spaced from the inner surface of the backing plate. The inner surface of the backing plate, the inner surface of the face plate and the inner surface of the upper wall define a cavity for receiving a portion of the sheet.
The upper wall of the clip is generally perpendicular to the backing plate. The face plate of the clip is movable between a first, generally flat configuration with the retaining leg in the closed position and a second, generally arcuate configuration with the retaining leg in the open position. The upper wall of the clip is movable between a first, generally flat configuration with the retaining leg in the closed position and a second, generally arcuate configuration with the retaining leg in the open position.
The backing plate has a width and the face plate of the clip has a width. The width of the backing plate is greater than the width of the face plate of the clip. The backing plate includes an outer surface and the article holder may include an adhesive provided on the outer surface of the backing plate for affixing the backing plate to the vertical surface. Alternatively, the article holder may include a hook extendable through the backing plate and into the vertical surface for retaining the backing plate on the vertical surface. The hook includes first and second legs interconnected by a crossbar. The legs have first and second opposite ends and are generally parallel. The first ends of the first and second legs include hooked elements formed therein.
In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, an article holder is provided for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface. The article holder includes a backing plate connectable to the vertical surface. The backing plate has inner and outer surfaces and an upper edge. A flexible face plate has an inner surface, an upper edge and a lower edge. A flexible upper wall interconnects the upper edge of the face plate and the upper edge of the backing plate. The upper wall has an inner surface. A retaining leg extends from the lower edge of the face plate and has a terminal end. The retaining leg is moveable between a closed position and an open position. In the closed position, the terminal end of the retaining leg engages the inner surface of the backing plate; the face plate is generally parallel to the backing plate; and the upper wall is generally perpendicular to the face plate and the backing plate. In the open position, the retaining leg is spaced from the inner surface of the backing plate; the face plate has a generally arcuate cross-section; and the upper wall has a generally arcuate cross-section.
The inner surface of the backing plate, the inner surface of the face plate and the inner surface of the upper wall define a cavity for receiving a portion of the sheet. The backing plate has a width and the face plate of the clip has a width. The width of the backing plate is greater than the width of the face plate of the clip. The article holder may include an adhesive provided on the outer surface of the backing plate for affixing the backing plate to the vertical surface. Alternatively, the article holder may include a hook extendable through the backing plate and into the vertical surface for retaining the backing plate on the vertical surface. The hook includes first and second legs interconnected by a crossbar. The legs have first and second opposite ends and are generally parallel. The first ends of the first and second legs include hooked elements formed therein.
In accordance with a still further aspect of the present invention, an article holder is provided for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface. The article holder includes a backing plate connectable to the vertical surface. The backing plate has inner and outer surfaces, upper edge and a width. A clip is operatively connected to the backing plate. The clip includes a face plate and an upper wall. The face plate has an inner surface, an upper edge, a lower edge and a width. The upper wall interconnects the upper edge of the face plate and the upper edge of the backing plate. The upper wall has an inner surface. A retaining leg extends from the lower edge of the face plate and has a terminal end. The retaining leg moveable between a closed position wherein the terminal end of the retaining leg engages the inner surface of the backing plate and the face plate is generally parallel to the backing plate, and an open position wherein the retaining leg is spaced from the inner surface of the backing plate and the face plate has a generally arcuate cross-section.
The upper wall is generally perpendicular to the face plate and the backing plate with the retaining leg in the closed position. The upper wall has a generally arcuate cross-section with the retaining leg in the open position. The inner surface of the backing plate, the inner surface of the face plate and the inner surface of the upper wall define a cavity for receiving a portion of the sheet. The width of the backing plate is greater than the width of the face plate of the clip.
The article holder may include an adhesive provided on the outer surface of the backing plate for affixing the backing plate to the vertical surface. Alternatively, the article holder may include a hook extendable through the backing plate and into the vertical surface for retaining the backing plate on the vertical surface. The hook includes first and second legs interconnected by a crossbar. The legs have first and second opposite ends and are generally parallel. The first ends of the first and second legs include hooked elements formed therein.